Decent News, October 2002

Some of the more decent news in the world: hopeful, courageous, funny, or just cool. A few are not pleasant, but are stories I think need to be heard. The following are all LINKS to external sites. Some links (e.g., many boston.com) stop working after a few days; some do not. URLs are added when appropriate (not necessarily daily).

Also on this page: News to Think Over

Separated twins expected to return to Guatemala next week AP at Boston.com 10/26/02

Arthritis drug improves symptoms BBC News 10/26/02

Nature Conservancy goes underwater CNN.com 10/21/02

Chinese Bass Hated Music, but Hear Him Now NY Times 10/22/02 (reg. req.)

Organic Gets an Additive: A U.S.D.A. Seal NY Times 10/21/02 (reg. req.)

Mass.-native Priest who helped liberate Dachau dies at 97 AP at Boston.com 10/16/02

Man arrested after bowlers apparently thwart attempted kidnapping of little girl in N.H. AP at Boston.com 10/15/02 More about what the bowlers did.

Study says duct tape removes warts CNN.com 10/15/02 and Potato Powder Stops Bleeding, May Help Surgery Reuters at news.yahoo.com 10/15/02

Striking Several Chords: 'The Full Monty' in Japan NY Times 10/9/02 "People's dreams are the same everywhere," said Kenji Koyama, who attended a matinee. "We can`t do anything about the weak economy, but we can always reach for dreams. We all have the same feelings."

Japanese Abductees Return From North Korea NY Times 10/15/02 (registration required) also at Kidnapped Japanese arrive home BBC News 10/15/02 ... and Reunion photos at Mainichi News(Japanese-only) Reunion news at Asahi News (Japanese-only) and a follow-up at Asahi (Japanese-only) All 10/15/02 "Let's go see the painting we all made together" Classmate waits for reunion - Yomiuri News (Japanese-only), and "What should I say first?" Relatives of the 5 Kidnapped Feel Anticipation, Anxiety - Yomiuri News (Japanese-only) "I would like to believe that my brother will also come home someday." "(In light of the victims reported dead) I just can't feel true elation."

Supplement (Co-Q10) slows Parkinson's decline BBC News 10/15/02

For $1, squatters become building owners; end of an era and a new beginning AP at Boston.com 10/13/02

Illinois town goes nuts for squirrels CNN.com 10/13/02

Dallas: Forgotten still lifes exposed CNN.com 10/13/02

National Geographic to establish Afghan girls school CNN.com 10/8/02

Indian musicians remember slain American reporter on his birthday AP at Boston.com 10/10/02

MIT scientists develop way to catch evolution in the act Boston Globe 10/10/02

Karim Mohammed: Banging the drum for broader cultural understanding Boston Globe 10/10/02

Honoring Holocaust literature, Nobel Prize goes to Hungarian novelist Imre Kertesz AP at Boston.com 10/10/02

No ordinary life - tracking a child with Down Syndrome at the Boston Globe 10/9/02

Hidden tales of the black home front (Black Britons in WWII) BBC.co.uk 10/5/02

First female pilot for U.S. airline makes hall of fame CNN.com 10/6/02

Dueling crochet needles and whirring wool CNN.com 10/6/02

Teen saved after online suicide bid CNN.com 10/4/02 "I was aware that it might be a potential hoax but I decided to try and risk making a fool out of myself because someone could have died."

Envoy says women's success can lead to peace CNN.com 10/4/02

Long fight brings Guatemalan officer to justice Boston Globe 10/5/02 "She endured death threats. Her key witnesses were either killed or had fled the country. ...Still, Helen Mack did not give up."

One pilot's pipeline to charity still flows: 9/11 victim's project gets volunteer boost Boston Globe 10/5/02

'My timing was perfect': First female pilot for U.S. airline makes hall of fame AP at Boston.com 10/5/02

Yumm! Crickets add crunch to chocolate treats at bug fair put on by Penn State entomologists AP at Boston.com 10/5/02

Big Dig's showcase bridge formally dedicated Boston.com 10/4/02

Mother Teresa on road to sainthood CNN.com 10/1/02

News to Think Over
And Pray About....

What's in a Name? Perhaps Plenty if You're a Job Seeker NY Times 12/12/02 ... racial profiling at work

The Doors of Perception ... how propaganda runs public perception. Well, not quite a news article, but it goes hand in hand with "For Richer," below.

AIDS robbing African classrooms CNN.com 11/27/02

As Andean Glaciers Shrink, Water Worries Grow NY Times 11/24/02

Problem of Lost Health Benefits Is Reaching Into the Middle Class NY Times 11/25/02 Maybe now things will change???

Whose Hands Are Dirty? NY Times 11/25/02 ... what's THAT doing in the Homeland Security bill?!

Gap hit by 'sweatshop' protests BBC News 11/21/02 "I'm Paid $0.30 an hour to make GAP clothes" read some signs.

Voters advise lawmakers to ax Clean Elections law AP at Boston.com 11/6/02 ... I saw the ballot and was the wording ever skewed against Clean Elections, which might have helped some non-bigwig politicians get into office ... and then we find out that Big Business paid lots of money to have Clean Elections killed. There's a song that had the refrain "Justice for money, how much more can I pay?" ... another case of that, sounds like!

For Richer NY Times article 10/20/02 (registration required) "Twenty years ago, would a prominent senator have likened those who want wealthy people to pay taxes to Nazis?" "Plutocracy by some other name"

Analysis: Pyongyang's U-turn on abductions BBC News 9/17/02

Google sued as PetsWarehouse Lawsuit Continues. Slashdot.com 10/03/02 ... scary example of one person causing a ripple effect of negativity.

Lavatory and Liberty: The secret history of the bathroom break Boston Globe 9/29/02 "conservative commentator R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. advised the workers to wear special diapers used by horses in New York's Central Park carriage trade." ... this is the US of A here!

It's time we looked toward the new power generation "So many of our current woes in the [Middle East] are rooted in our oil addiction.[....] What needs to follow the dot-com generation is the new power generation." But will business stand in the way? It's happened: read about GM and LA here and here.

Accord yields frustration for black farmers Boston Globe 9/7/02 "The ultimate irony for the farmers is that they are dealing with many of the same USDA employees who were in place when the alleged discrimination occurred."

Abortion politics holding up popular health center bill AP at Boston.com 9/7/02 ... I don't care what anyone's position is on abortion in this case... it has nothing to do with health care for millions of people.

Televisionary: Decades after the fact, the world is just tuning in to the work of TV inventor Philo T. Farnsworth Boston Globe 9/7/02 ... It's not just Farnsworth. Other inventors and contributors have been denied their proper place in history.

Parents' behavior linked to teen sex: Study cites influence of smoking, drinking Boston Globe 9/1/02

Growing coffee: It's black, no sugar... MSNBC.com 8/02 ... more argument for "Fair Trade" coffee. Oxfam launches 'Coffee Rescue' plan BBC News 9/17/02

US Won't Buy Sanitation Goal: Earth Summit II delegation again opposes new targets MSNBC 8/27/02 "The United States on Wednesday continued its policy of resisting new targets for global environmental action...."

Music industry targets Chinese download site via service providers digitalmass.boston.com 8/19/02 ... so large corporate conglomerations can censor what we can see and hear.

Slain woman's family describes tense relationship Boston Globe 8/17/02. The irony is that experts could have told these people this man was the type to kill his girlfriend. Experts know the traits of domestic violence murderers. Experts know why troubled, fragile men kill their girlfriends. Just reading the symptoms is like seeing warning flags. How many more "she never imagined that X could act violently toward Y"s will there be before we really stop these murders before they happen? Read the book The Gift of Fear!

FBI begins secretly observing library patrons Detroit Free Press 6/25/02 ... remember, the US government, OUR government, once did such things as spy on Martin Luther King Jr., and even tried to get him to commit suicide!

Fuel Cell Hold-up Government's go-slow approach promises to keep the technology on the shelf and Cold Fusion Rides Again Science magazine publishes more evidence of tabletop nuclear reactions, SF Gate, 6/20/202 and 3/25/02, respectively.

After Sept. 11, a Legal Battle Over Limits of Civil Liberty NY Times (registration req'd) 8/4/02

Congress to turn hacks into hackers The Register 7/24/02 "it will become legal to hack a network [in the name of protecting copyrights]" ....

No End to Their Woes: Allegations of sexual extortion by aid workers in Africa Newsweek 7/29/02 issue February Press Release

1970-85 Famine Blamed on Pollution AP at news.yahoo.com 7/21/02

Labels to Net Radio: Die Now ...MSNBC.com 7/15/2002 IMHO pretty outrageous.

What your doctor doesn't know could kill you Boston Globe Magazine 7/14/02

Idealized Women in TV Ads Make Girls Feel Bad Reuters health at news.yahoo.com 7/12/02

Clinton, Mandela: More money, determination needed to halt march of AIDS AP at Boston.com 7/12/02

Lutheran minister suspended over interfaith service after terrorist attacks AP at Boston.com 7/8/02

Dow Shall Be Liable CorpWatch India 4/8/02 ... I had forgotten the Bhopal, India chemical leak killed 16-20,000 and affected 150,000. That's sixteen to twenty thousand people. There are some parallels with this story about Aberfan, Wales.

The pop-up ad campaign from hell: It's the latest in Web marketing innovation: Hijacked Web surfers, exploited Web browser vulnerabilities and malicious spyware all wrapped up together. Salon.com 5/7/02

The outrageous Vincent Chin murder, where the assailants were "let off the hook" and Rededication to Justice.

Meeting the 'chocolate slaves' BBC News 6/13/02

BAH HAHAHAHAHA TV sex does not sell, study says: Viewers less likely to focus on ads Boston Globe 6/23/02

Current Decent News

Decent News for September 2002

Decent News for August 2002

Decent News for July 2002

Decent News for June 2002 (First "News to Think Over")

Decent News for May 2002

Decent News for April 2002

Decent News for March 2002